Say hello to baby Dev (and his two adoring dads)
On February 14, baby Dev made his grand entrance into the world.
A month and a half later, we met up with his parents, Spencer Chandra Herbert and Romi Chandra, for a playdate and to chat about the first month of being new parents.
It quickly turned into an impromptu photo session. (We’re pretty sure you can understand why).
“Public health care, community centres, reading programs – these are services that are out there for new parents. And they’re all about building community and understanding together. We can’t do it on our own. Parenting has just reinforced for me that we have so much more in common with others, and we can do great things together.” - Spencer
“I take great satisfaction in hearing a burp and I work hard for it. That’s different.” - Romi
“We’re living in a society where it’s still challenging to be queer dads. But maybe in Dev’s generation there will be changes in what gendered parenting looks like.” - Romi
“It was a gentle reminder that while we’ve created a safe and inclusive community, not everyone else has that. People feel they can share whatever they want on social media. The community’s response has been amazing, when someone wrote something negative, others challenged people on it.” - Romi, on the social media haters
“People have really identified with our story and want us to succeed as a family. This has shown me that a politics of hope - hope for a better future or hope for our children – can be a very unifying thing.” - Spencer
“Thank you to everyone for being so supportive and kind. It’s awesome. Deciding to become parents is the best thing we’ve ever done.” - Spencer
It looks like little Dev’s first month is off to a nice start.
Learn more about Spencer and the work he does for Vancouver West-End.